NU3E's Amateur Radio and Electronic Hobby Page


Amateur Radio and Electronic Hobby Projects


Amateur Radio Station NU3E (ex-WB3GNB, ex-WN0GFF)

Fall 1971

During my first semester at the University of Missouri-Rolla I attended a license course sponsored by the school club W0EEE. I received my Novice Class amateur radio license WN0GFF on December 7, 1971. The equipment shown in the photo below, with the exception of the antenna tuner and headphones, is what I used in my fraternity house bedroom. A metal fire escape on the side of the fraternity house served as my transmitting antenna! I only made a handful of contacts as a Novice and the 2-year non-renewable license expired before I was able to upgrade.

Spring 1977

I left college in June 1976 and took a job with Hewlett-Packard in Avondale, PA. One of my co-workers, David Hawk WA3KDQ, administered my second Novice Class amateur radio examination. I received my license on 17 March 1977 and was assigned the callsign WB3GNB. I lived in a basement apartment and managed only a single contact -- on 19 March 1977 to local amateur Ira Tartack WA3TNP -- using an indoor (underground!) antenna. In June 1977 I moved to a rented townhouse shared with 3 friends in Newark, Delaware, a location much more conducive to amateur radio.

Fall 1977

Amateur Radio Station WB3GNB, Fall 1977 This photo shows amateur radio station WB3GNB as it appeared in Fall 1977. It was located in my 2nd floor bedroom.

My transmitter, a Heathkit DX-35, is the large box in the center of the photo. My antenna was a sloping length of magnet wire which you can see disappearing off the top right corner of the photo. It ran out my window and down to an insulator which was tied to the rear fence in our back yard.

On top of the transmitter sits my homemade L-network antenna tuner consisting of a coil of wire wrapped around a piece of plastic drain pipe and a variable capacitor salvaged from an old AM radio. An antenna switch allows selection of either the sloper antenna or a dummy load.

My receiver, a Hallicrafters SX-140, is just barely visible at the right side of the photo. On the left side of the photo is a loudspeaker, a Heathkit SWR bridge, and a pair of Sennheiser headphones.

Fall 1978

Amateur Radio Station WB3GNB, Fall 1978 On 24 January 1978 I passed the General and Advanced Class amateur radio examinations at the FCC office in Philadelphia, PA. In May I constructed a homebrew electronic keyer using 4000 series CMOS ICs and purchased a Bencher iambic paddle. In August I constructed a Heathkit HW-8 transceiver for the 80, 40, 20, and 15 meter bands.

This photo shows my upgraded station after I moved it to the basement of the townhouse. As you can see from the wall, the basement had a significant moisture problem! The HW-8 transceiver, Bencher paddle, and homebrew keyer are on the desktop. I made the desk from a 1960s vintage RCA color television cabinet.

Spring 1980

Amateur Radio Station WB3GNB, Spring 1980 On 13 September 1978 I installed this Hy-Gain 18AVQ vertical antenna in the back yard of our rented townhouse in Newark, DE. My neighbors referred to it as "Radio Free Newark". My girlfriend, a University of Delaware student whom I would later marry, posed here with the antenna just before I dismantled it prior to moving to a house I purchased in Yorklyn, DE in April 1980.

The 1980s

Spring 1989

In early 1989 I attended an Extra Class license study group taught by Fred Sowers NT3E and sponsored by the AWARE radio club in Wilmington, DE. On 18 February 1989 I passed the amateur radio Extra Class examination and was assigned the callsign NU3E.

Fall 1995

In January 1995 I accepted a job at the David Sarnoff Research Center in Princeton, NJ. We moved into a new home in Plainsboro, DE in September 1995. The community had restrictive covenants which prohibited outside antennas. I was able to continue enjoying my amateur radio hobby by constructing a coaxial-cable trap dipole antenna in the attic.

September 2000

We moved to Columbus, New Jersey, in northern Burlington County. I relocated my coaxial-cable trap dipole antenna to the attic of the new home.

January 2004

Amateur Radio Station NU3E, January 2004 This is my current station, located in the basement of my home. The Heathkit HW-5400 that I assembled in July 1983 is my primary HF rig.

Author: John DeGood, nu3e@arrl.net
Last updated: Mon 19 Jan 2004